Tuesday, March 23, 2010

The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings in 3D?

A new article from Deadline New York suggests that Warner Bros is considering releasing The Hobbit films and re-releasing The Lord of the Rings trilogy in 3D.

The Warners discussions on The Hobbit are equally intriguing. Initially, del Toro favored a 2D shoot on film, insiders said. But Warners is sitting on a potential gold mine, looking at an extra theatrical and ancillary revenue cycle if the studio spends $60 million or so to convert the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. It will be an all or nothing decision on five LOTR films, because Warners will not convert LOTR then release a pair of 2D Hobbit films that look visually inferior.

The information is part of an article about Hollywood's growing desire to release films in 3D even if they were not original created with the format in mind by converting them into 3D like was done for Alice in Wonderland and Clash of the Titans. The new found love for 3D was the result of the massive success of Avatar and only strengthened by Alice's successful release. The article doesn't indicate if the Hobbit plans mean it will be converted or if Del Tor will make use of 3D cameras. If the goal is a unified look, then it seems the conversion process is the more likely (and cheaper) choice. Thanks to David and NHLfan for the link.